My Six Degrees Idol

Why hello there, world.

That may not be the most professional way to open things, but I believe that blogs should feel a little more personal. Almost like we’re having a conversation; albeit a rather one-sided one. In this post I want to talk about the Six Degrees of Separation, and specifically my “Six Degree Idol”. For anyone who is not familiar with the Six Degrees of Separation, it is a concept that essentially states that you can be connected to anyone on Planet Earth within 6 “degrees”, or connections.

Today, I am going to breakdown how I am connected to writer/director Quentin Tarantino.

The first degree of separation is Roger Williams, the President & CEO of Inspired Image Picture Company. Most recently, he directed the documentary RiverBlue; which details the impact that fast fashion — specifically the classic blue jeans we all love to wear — is having a tremendously horrible effect on the world’s rivers. My father introduced me to Roger a few years ago, and I spent about a month shadowing two of the editors that work at Inspired Image’s Vancouver location.

In my month of shadowing, my eyes were opened in a number of major ways when it comes to the art and process of film making, and editing. I thought I had a much stronger base of knowledge than I did, and that realization set me on the path I currently walk as a BCIT Television & Video Production student. Also during that time, a shoot was scheduled to take place at Inspired Image. I do not recall what the video was for, but it brought in the presence of a very well-known Vancouver-born singer: Michael Bublé.

He would be next link in this little chain I am forming. Bublé released his debut album in 2001, and has released eight studio albums in the 16 years since. Despite his worldwide success, Bublé is still quite prominent in the Vancouver community. He has been one of the co-owners of the WHL’s Vancouver Giants since 2008, and has supported a number of charitable projects. While I cannot profess myself to be a huge fan of his music, I’ve certainly enjoyed much of what I have heard. I certainly enjoy his rendition of Feeling Good, and he performed a very cool version of the classic Spider-Man theme that I really love.

Unfortunately, I did not get to meet Mr. Bublé. Myself and the other editors were sent for a long lunch, and they had completed their short shoot by the time we returned. While it would’ve been an undoubtedly cool experience, for the purposes of this exercise he serves as a stepping stone towards an ultimate goal, and leads to the next link in the chain. Between 2005 and 2010, Michael Bublé performed five separate times on the Late Show with David Letterman.

David Letterman is one of a number of absolutely legendary late night television hosts, in addition to being a writer, comedian, and producer. He was on the air as a late night host for a total of 33 years, and retired from the Late Show in May 2015. He is revered as one of the absolute greats in his field by many, even if many of his best years were a little before my time.

As a part of doing the job Letterman did for so many years, he has had countless Hollywood actors, directors, and more appear on his show. Which leads us directly to the final goal of this blog post: Quentin Tarantino.

Tarantino appeared on the Late Show a total of five times between 1994 and 2009, and is one of the most well-known directors in modern Hollywood. His films are known for heavily stylized violence, dialogue-heavy scenes, and large ensemble casts, as well as references to many of the pop culture moments that have inspired his films. Winning many industry awards, including two Oscars and two Golden Globes, Tarantino’s films have been both critically and commercially successful.

Tarantino is also notorious for his claims that he would retire from film making after completing his tenth film. His most recent film was The Hateful Eight, which was a personal landmark for me because it was the only movie I can remember that I have seen projected on film. The 70mm projection of The Hateful Eight was one of the most magical movie-going experiences of my life for that reason alone, and one that inspires me to create to this day.

So there you have it, the six degrees of separate from myself — Sandro Desaulniers, BCIT student — to Quentin Tarantino, one of the biggest names in the film industry. It’s certainly interesting to see how quickly you can form these links, particularly if you can find a way to tie into any sort of late night show. That alone can be used to connect to so many people, even if getting there is a bit of a journey.

If you stumbled across this online somewhere, I hope you were moderately entertained by it. That wraps it up for me here so until next time, I bid you adieu.